Introduction
Any form of healthcare improvement should be focused on bettering patient experience, patient safety, service costs, and quality. These objectives can be achieved by the deliberate and step-by-step implementation of the Triple Aim initiatives. However, it is important to distinguish the setting differences between long-term care and acute care. The given changes can be promoted at any level, such as healthcare administrators and the director of nursing. The integration of the improvements must involve cost-effective quality care, where medical errors are minimized, which ensures that patients feel satisfied and safe.
Triple Aim
Triple Aim is initiatives designed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. They are comprised of reducing per capita cost of healthcare, improving the health of populations, and improving the patient experience of care through satisfaction and quality (“The IHI Triple Aim,” 2020). In the long-term care setting, reducing per capita cost can be achieved by cutting unnecessary expenses, which bring no real benefit to the residents. For example, overstaffing might the cause of the issue, and some administrative perks might also be unneeded. The process of improving the health of the population might be implemented among elderly individuals by adjusting nursing homes to be safer and more welcoming towards the target group. It is stated that falls among older adults are highly expensive because both fatal and nonfatal falls cost approximately $50 billion (Florence et al., 2018). Therefore, developing effective preventative measures against falls among aging individuals might save a substantial sum of monetary resources.
Patient experience can also be improved in the long-term care setting, where people chronic diseases and disabilities, and older adults are satisfied with the quality and safety of care. It is stated that emotional intelligence improvement among nurses can significantly boost the overall performance metrics in a long-term care healthcare facility, such as a nursing home (Batbaatar et al., 2017). It is evident that open communication and adhering to values of decency can play a central role in enhancing the overall patient experience. Similarly, the Triple Aim initiative can be successfully integrated into acute care settings. The main difference between the given condition is the urgency and severity of the issues at hand. In addition, patients are expected to stay for a significantly shorter period of time.
Cost per capita reduction and health betterment of population in acute care can be achieved through similar means as in long-term care settings. It is stated that perceived nurse caring and patient satisfaction are in strong correlation, and nurses can improve themselves in such an environment by ensuring confidentiality and timely provision of medications and treatments (Nightingale et al., 2018). These measures can also improve patient experience directly because a specialist adheres to the outlined schedule and treats patients with diligence and respect.
The social orientation of the domestic health care system determines the goal of further reform. Ultimately, it is aimed at maximizing the satisfaction of the population’s demands for medical care. In this regard, it seems necessary to once again focus on the characteristics of determining satisfaction with medical care. The use of this term as a criterion for assessing the effectiveness of the chosen policy for the development of the national health system presupposes clarity in understanding its content.
Patient expectations about the ability of the health care system to meet their needs are increasing in proportion to the level of technical equipment and professional training of staff. It also includes developments in medical science, the prevalence of information technology, and the effectiveness of organizational decisions. Indeed, it is important to invest significant financial resources in health care and to continuously improve the organization of medical care. Failure to adhere to these trajectories will manifest itself in a growing number of patient industry dissatisfaction. This entails an increase in the number of complaints about poor quality service and unprofessional actions of medical workers. Any party is interested in public support for the course of ongoing reforms. The imbalance between the desires of patients and the capabilities of the health care system is a very urgent problem. The issue seriously complicates the main social task of health protection – achieving the highest possible level of health for all.
Improving Cost Effective Quality Care
As a director of nursing or healthcare administrator, cost-effective quality care can be achieved by correct management of resources and monitoring of the staff. The study suggests that there is a wide range of determinants of patient satisfaction, but one of the most universal and critical elements is interpersonal care (King et al., 2019). Therefore, such an objective can be achieved by deliberately promoting and training the nursing personnel on communication techniques that ensure proper flow and exchange of ideas. I would also ensure that there will be strict rules regarding the safety requirements, where adherence is managed through evaluations. In the case of satisfaction, schedule adherence and skillful communication will be encouraged by me.
The financial aspect of the quality care needs to strive towards cost efficiency, where every allocated resource yields an intended outcome. The given dimension of nursing can be obtained by deliberate monitoring and assessment of the processes. It is important to note that some corporate business practices in operational management can be adapted to the healthcare setting. Therefore, it will be critical to analyze the procedural activities occurring within the facility thoroughly. In addition, it will be essential to estimate the costs of each aspect of the operations. A team of professional analysts and managers would have to derive the most unnecessary spending and expenses that do not result in the intended outcome. These flaws of the processes should be fully eliminated or replaced by more plausible approaches.
Satisfaction with medical care, which directly depends on the level of patient expectations, is made up of many factors, most of which are subjective. The main reason is that it makes it difficult to assess the degree of satisfaction of the population with medical care. The most informative method for studying the opinions of patients regarding the work of the health care system is the conduct of sociological surveys. Large organizations have extensive experience in learning public opinion on health issues. A significant amount of information has now been accumulated that allows healthcare managers to analyze a wide range of requests and expectations of patients regarding medical care. Acquaintance with the data of opinion polls on the most pressing health problems can be beneficial for understanding the trends in the formation of public opinion in relation to many aspects of the health care system. However, it should be taken into account that each party has its own unique model of the functioning of the health care system. In addition, patients’ opinions about job satisfaction depend on a variety of cultural, political, and economic factors.
There is a possibility of seeking information about health, diseases, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases, medical services, and the work of health organizations. In organizations where the structure and organization of health care systems have recently undergone dramatic changes, patients may have many questions about the functioning of the health insurance model. There are also pertinent questions about the criteria for choosing health insurance, insurance fund, specific specialists, and the volume of medical care. Most may find it difficult to navigate the reformed health care system, not clearly understand their role in the new design of relationships.
Medical Errors
There are a number of practices that could be used to minimize medical error occurrence rates among front-line nursing staff. It is important to indicate the presence of two major types of errors, which are omissions and commissions (Rodziewicz & Hipskind, 2020). Thus, proposed practices should include identification of patient risks and dangers and patients themselves. In addition, one should ensure that the test results are delivered to the correct person, which can only be achieved through proper communication structure (Rodziewicz & Hipskind, 2020). Basic medical error minimization measures should include hand-cleaning, catheter changes, and post-surgery antibiotics use (Rodziewicz & Hipskind, 2020). A front-line nursing specialist needs to label all medication, including syringes, and he or she must give correct medicines to the identified patient. Staff should also spend extra time with patients on chemotherapeutic agents and anticoagulants because they are vulnerable to hasty care procedures (Rodziewicz & Hipskind, 2020). Lastly, the simple use of properly functioning device alarms can make a significant difference in schedule adherence and error reduction.
The attitude of patients to the possible expansion of the professional duties of nurses is ambiguous. On the one hand, nurses are more accessible than doctors, attentive to the needs of patients, have the necessary knowledge and skills, and are experienced, medical professionals. Many patients may consider senior nurses to be as knowledgeable as doctors, especially in the field of obstetrics and emergency medicine. On the other hand, nurses do not have enough knowledge and qualifications to carry out some of the doctors’ duties, such as interviewing patients, making preliminary diagnoses, prescribing repeated prescriptions, and performing minor operations. In addition, patients may feel that nurses are too busy with their work and do not have time for additional work. In general, patients are satisfied with the current state of affairs, and they see nurses as effective assistants to doctors, but not their replacements.
Conclusion
In conclusion, healthcare improvement needs to center around a patient and his or her safety, experience, and satisfaction. In addition, a healthcare professional should provide a high-quality service within a reasonable price range. Triple Aim initiative can be helpful in setting a plausible strategy for improving a healthcare facility. Although similar goals can be applied to both long-term care and acute care settings, there are some differences in population age and time of stay. Therefore, these performance metrics need to be accounted for when developing an improvement plan. As a healthcare administrator or director of nursing, managerial changes can be integrated in order to reduce costs and increase efficiency. Medical errors can also be minimized through a series of effective practices, which involve the most basic ones, such as washing hands.
References
Batbaatar, E., Dorjdagva, J., Luvsannyam, A., Savino, M. M., & Amenta, P. (2017). Determinants of patient satisfaction: A systematic review. Perspectives in Public Health, 137(2), 89-101. Web.
Florence, C. S., Bergen, G., Atherly, A., Burns, E., Stevens, J., & Drake, C. (2018). Medical costs of fatal and nonfatal falls in older adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 66(4), 693-698. Web.
King, B. M., Linette, D., Donohue-Smith, M., & Wolf, Z. R. (2019). Relationship between perceived nurse caring and patient satisfaction in patients in a psychiatric acute care setting. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 57(7), 29-38. Web.
Nightingale, S., Spiby, H., Sheen, K., & Slade, P. (2018). The impact of emotional intelligence in health care professionals on caring behaviour towards patients in clinical and long-term care settings: Findings from an integrative review. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 80, 106-117. Web.
Rodziewicz, T. L., & Hipskind, J. E. (2020). Medical error prevention. StatPearls Publishing.
The IHI Triple Aim. (2020). Web.